Future Focused - AMPI Summer Tour
AMPI Young Cooperator (YC) families focused on farming for the future during the annual YC Summer Tour in St. Cloud, Minn.
This year’s event brought together the largest group in nearly a decade with 45 adults and 34 children attending. Of those, 15 families were first-time attendees.
A behind-the-scenes look at AMPI’s Paynesville, Minn., cheese plant headlined the tour. Visitors learned about the plant’s recently expanded capabilities, including new nonfat dry milk processing equipment. Highlights also included visiting AMPI member farm Riverview LLP’s Louriston Dairy, which uses many innovative practices to manage and care for 9,500 cows. At DCI Inc., attendees learned about the technology used to manufacture stainless steel storage, such as milk silos.
AMPI thanks Advanced Process Technologies (APT), Custom Fabricating & Repair (CFR) and Loos Machine & Automation for sponsoring this year’s tour.
Below are descriptions of the eight photos above. They are in numerical order, going left to right.
Tour participants arrive at the Paynesville facility that processes up to 4 million pounds of milk daily and produces up to 340,000 pounds of barrel cheese.
AMPI Production Supervisor Tim Hoffman explains the cheesemaking process as Isaac Solumn, Rice Lake, Wis., takes a look at cheese curd on the salting belt.
As part of the tour, AMPI donated 200 packages of Dinner Bell Creamery American cheese slices — made with cheese from Paynesville barrels — to the Paynesville Community Service Food Shelf. Presenting the donation to director Allison Janssen, far right, are AMPI Division Manager Jim Jung and 2025 AMPI YC Chairperson Gina Salitros with her daughters, Gloria and Magdalen.
Dairy nutritionist Ian Wood leads a discussion about herd rations and production data, offering insights for making adjustments that can impact milk components, cheese yield and the milk check.
Larry Enright, Cruise Marketing, shares the journey of bringing Dinner Bell Creamery products to Midwest grocery stores through the Associated Wholesale Grocers network.
First-time attendees, from left, Brantley, Justin and Maverick Bauman of Elkton, S.D., take a look at a carousel that operates 22 hours a day, allowing 106 cows to be milked simultaneously, at Louriston Dairy in Murdock, Minn.
Bridgette Leitheiser, daughter of Adam and Greta Leitheiser, Emery, S.D., fashions a turtle from cheese during a children’s crafting activity.
All ages got in on the fun during an evening networking event at Amaze’n Farmyard. Enjoying a round of miniature golf are, from left, Peyton Luehmann, Lewiston, Minn.; Ethan Johnson, Heron Lake, Minn.; Isaac Griebel, New Ulm, Minn.; and Jackson Luehmann, Lewiston, Minn.
